Wednesday, July 25, 2012

I swear - one day I'm going to get back into blogging regularly. Figuring out when I have time to do it (and what I'd blog about other than how cute my baby is or how hard it is to be a mom to a newborn) is actually a pretty big challenge as well. While I don't have a lot of time for blogging, I am catching up on my tv/movie watching while I feed at night. :-)

Luca had his one month appointment today (although he is now 5 weeks and 3 days old) and he is doing great from a growth standpoint. This little chunkier is 9 lbs and 15 oz and is 22 inches long. Even though breastfeeding is still a challenge, it seems like Luca is getting what he needs and he is growing like a champ!

We went to the cottage this past weekend and it was a bit better than the first time - he slept a little and I was able to sneak in a few naps AND I finally was able to dye my hair.

On the topic of sleeping - Luca is not that great at it to be honest. Poor little guy. Sometimes I think he must be so tired because he isn't getting as much sleep as the books say he should (i.e. most say 16 hours a day and some days he only gets 3 or so during the day and 6 at night (and not all at once!). But we soothe, we swaddle, we feed and feed and feed and the poor guy just won't stop crying and sleep. However, just when I'm ready to lose it, he usually has a decent night and then I feel human again.

This is what Luca looks like when he is SO exhausted that he finally goes down:

Luca tested out the hammock at the cottage (just for a second of course):

We watched J try wake boarding for the first time:

And all in all had a good weekend. Until we hit traffic on the way home. Am I the only one who dreads stopping in a car because then the baby starts screaming? Stop and go traffic is the worst!

Anyways - I'm crossing my fingers for a good night tonight because a) I'm tired and b) we have a packed schedule tomorrow :-) Wish us luck!

Monday, July 16, 2012

Can you believe it? I think I've got a slight case of denial over the fact that he is already 4 weeks old. 4 weeks ago, he was snug in my belly and I was still saying things like "when the baby arrives" and "let's go out for dinner".

Times sure have changed!

Here is the scoop on how things are going:

Mood: Luca has developed a slight case of the fussies - I'd go as far as saying he has some symptoms of colic but I am not a doctor. All I know is that he goes through periods of time where all he does is scream. If I'm lucky, there is one 15 minutes period during the day where he is awake and not eating or crying. That period is really great.

Sleeping: Prior to getting so fussy, Luca was sleeping about 2 hours at a time in his crib or falling asleep happily in our arms. Now things have changed a bit and we aren't quite as lucky. It is a rare day where he falls asleep on my chest or in my arms. Basically, when I know he is tired I make sure he is fed and changed and I swaddle him up and put him to sleep. Keeps me stuck in his nursery a bit more (i.e. no cuddles on the couch) but it seems to be working and we are getting sleep through the night in about 3 hour increments. Except for last night, but let's hope that is just a blip on the radar and we are back to the 3 hour chunks tonight!

Feeding: Breastfeeding is TOUGH, yo! As you know we struggled with is weight to start but I think he is now growing well. We are still working on perfecting breastfeeding and it isn't quite easy for us yet, but we have conquered our first (and second, third and forth) 'public' feeds so I am feeling a little more comfortable being out of the house with the little guy. While I am happy that I am able to breastfeed him, I do find it quite lonely especially on days when he is cluster feeding.

Weight (Luca's): Our one month appointment is next week so I don't know his exact weight, but I'm guessing he is bigger :-) He is definitely heavier when I pick him up and carrying him in his car seat is giving my arm muscles a work out! I'll update everyone once I know his exact weight. He is still wearing his newborn clothes (and a few 0-3 month items that are a bit big) and he is still in newborn diapers (although they are starting to get a bit snug around his thunder thighs!).

Health: I'd say he is healthy! He struggles with some gas pains (which I gather is normal) and the fussiness mentioned above, but nothing concerning (just frustrating at times!). He developed baby acne at around 2 weeks which he still has, but from what i understand that just goes away on its own.

My Recovery: I am feeling pretty good now (other than a bit tired). I dropped 50% of my baby weight in about 1.5 weeks and am not stressing about the rest for the time being. I figure I've got other, more important things to worry about :-) Emotionally, I found the first few weeks to be very, very trying. I'm not going to lie, I cried a lot. Sometimes with reason, and other times out of nowhere, like when I was eating a sandwich or getting ready to take a nap. I had been warned about the tears (thank goodness for that warning) but I still don't think that adequately prepared me for how difficult the transition to motherhood would be on me emotionally. I am feeling a lot better now - I think it is connected to me getting a better handle on taking care of Luca.

Last night was a bit of a bad night so today I'm pretty tired, and with the heat we've been experiencing here in Toronto, I decided to head out to an air conditioned mall to cruise around while Luca got some rest and I could get some quiet time. However, upon parking and pulling the stroller out of the trunk, I realized that I forgot the attachment that allows the car seat to attach to the stroller. Which meant I had to drive all the way home to get it. Which meant that I was going to call J and RAGE for about 15 minutes over my frustration at having worked so hard at even getting out of the house (i.e. change, feed, get in car seat, load car, etc) just to turn around and have to go home. Poor guy. It is just so hard to keep it all together when you are tired and you feel like you have NO IDEA what you are doing. Every day I have at least one moment where I seriously question whether I locked the house, closed the garage door or closed all the doors on the car when I went into a store. Is this what they call mommy-brain?

SO - does anyone have any tips on dealing with a screaming, fussy baby? When will I start to get the cozy baby cuddles that I see on tv? And at what point will I have myself together enough that I can actually feel decent enough to let someone take a picture of me and the little guy?

Thursday, July 12, 2012

I swear - waiting for our episode on Sarah 101 to air was almost as hard as waiting for Luca's arrival! Originally, the season was going to air earlier in the spring which would have been amazing because it would have aired prior to my due date. Unfortunately, for some tv reasons, it was moved and I found out that our air date was going to be after our due date.

Which for a blogger who loves showing pics of her house was TOUGH.

All of our waiting paid off and last night was THE NIGHT. Our episode ended up being the season finale of season 2 of Sarah 101 (seriously - it couldn't have been any later! haha) and can I say...I LOVED IT!!

So I am happy to answer most questions if you have any about being on the show and what we think of the nursery! I'll start with a few of the questions I've received already:

1. How did we get on the show?

Click here for details on how we applied and were chosen!! Funny enough, for some reason I thought that we were one of only a few applications but it sounds like other people were up for grabs too and we were lucky enough to get chosen!! Check out this blog for more details!!

2. Did we contribute to the budget?

Yes. Part of the application was a question about what our budget was for the makeover. We just put in what we would have spent on the nursery if we did it ourselves and hoped for the best. To be honest, I had no idea how it worked so I didn't know if what we put down would help us get chosen or what. In the end, the show puts in 10K (which seems INSANE for a small nursery) but that includes all of the labour and materials. With the exception of the obvious DIY projects (art, mobile), all of the work was done by professionals so I imagine that gets pricey. They did say that the 10K they contribute is the first money they use - i.e. if they only used 10, we'd get our contribution back. That didn't happen, which wasn't a surprise :-)

3. How much input did we have?

Not much. The application asked us some basic questions about our style and what we were hoping for and what we would hate. I think the only things I said were out of the question were a) removing the hardwood/putting broadloom on top of it, b) the colours yellow and/or hunter green. Other than that we were pretty open because since it was a nursery, I thought it could be a bit wilder (which it was, literally).

The only thing we were asked during the reno was whether or not I would be okay with kelly green. To be honest, I got kind of nervous when I received that email. I did a quick google search and first found this:

and I got nervous. Then I saw this:

and felt better. I wrote back and said that as long as it was an accent colour (and not all the walls) I was cool with it.

One other thing - you guys all know about how I wanted a Jenny Lind crib for the nursery before we were ever going to be on Sarah 101. Well, they saw that on my blog (OMG they read my blog!) and tried to get it (as you saw on the show). Once the filming of the show was complete, they did offer to swap out the crib for the Jenny Lind if we wanted. Which I thought was pretty nice. I decided against it mostly because I didn't hate the crib they chose and I didn't think it would make a big difference design-wise.

Other than that, we had pretty much no input.

4. Why did the format seem different for our episode?

i.e. the show didn't have us reacting to the different fabrics/wallpapers, etc like they usually do in the other episodes. We were actually filmed reacting to the fabrics and wallpaper but I think that it was cut because a) we pretty much loved everything they showed us (so not a 'fun' for tv reaction) or b) the timeline was so tight that there was no room for changes. We could have hated that wallpaper and it still would have gone up. It had been ordered and there was no going back :-)

5. How long did the process take?

I can't remember exactly, but it took about 2 weeks. Seriously. That's it. Week one didn't have any action at our house as I gather that is when the planning and sourcing happened. Week two had tv crews, painters, carpenters and the design team in and out of our place during the day. It was so fun how every day there would be something new in our house - either something in the nursery (imagine how fun it was when we came home and the wallpaper was up!) or bags and bags of accessories that filled our family room. Baby toys, clothes, baskets, bowls, books. Not everything that made it into our place made it into the nursery. It was cool to see what the team brought in and didn't make the cut.

Seriously - two weeks to put together a nursery AND film everything? Insane. Explains why the Jenny Lind crib didn't make it in time :-)

6. Did we meet Sarah?

I did. Only by chance, actually. All of the filming was done during the day while we were at work (we were actually asked not to be home during that time) and on the day the finale was filmed, I came home and Sarah and Tommy were just finishing up so they were still here. The meeting was brief but Sarah was very nice. She wanted to see my reaction to the room but I was a good wife and said I had to wait for J to get home. I wish that I'd gotten a photo of me with Sarah and Tommy but the opportunity never really arose.

7. Favourite things about/in the nursery?

Where to start. I'll start with the overall theme/feeling of the nursery. I love it. I love that it is themed without being kitchy. There are no cartoon-type giraffes and rhinos anywhere. Many of the accessories would be appropriate in a different room in our house. But most of all, the nursery is cozy. It is probably the warmest feeling room in our house. When you walk in, you definitely feel a sense of calm and coziness. I'm not sure what creates that feeling. The lighting? The area rug? I'm not sure, but it is there.

As far as the smaller items go, I LOVE the green crib. I think having a painted crib is so fun and I definitely love that green colour. I think the change table is gorgeous. Sarah was right - it is a piece of furniture I would happily use elsewhere in our home once it isn't needed in the nursery. The shape and the detail on it are gorgeous. And the mirror. Love the mirror. Luca is starting to like it too!

I also am a big fan of the fully stocked closet :-) The clothes, the bath gear, the itty bitty shoes - ADORABLE. And the fact the wall is green? So fun! It was a nice way of using the accent colour in a bit of an unexpected/hidden way.

I also love love love the wallpapers. Who would have thought that I would love zebra print wallpaper?! I think that if it had been black and white it would have been too much but because the print is in neutral colours, I just love it! And combined with the grass cloth? Amazing.

8. Anything I didn't love?

Being brutally honest, the only thing I didn't *LOVE* in the room was (sorry Sarah and Tommy!) the rocking chair. Yes, I know I said I loved it on the show, but I knew that Sarah loved the rocker and that it was a big deal on the episode and I wanted to be nice and complimentary. I think the fabric is a little rough and itchy (although the colours are good for disguising any spills etc that may occur) and the rocking mechanism that was added to it is a little quick for my liking. Do you know what I mean? It is a quick rock back and forth and I don't find it super comfy (i.e. I will never fall asleep in it). However, it does the job. I'm not going to lie though - I was really hoping for a Sarah Richardson Designs glider :-)

8.5 Did I know the chair was a curb-find?

No. I knew it was an older chair that Sarah had remade, but no, I didn't know it was found on the side of the road. Am I happy about that? Meh. I don't really care. I like a deal as much as the next girl, so I can appreciate the 'find' so long as it was clean (plus the chair was basically ripped apart and rebuilt). It probably cost a fortune to rebuild and recover it, so even though it was 'free' I don't think it was cheap.

9. Did we change anything?

Nope. Not a thing. We have added more stuff to it (mostly in the closet) and we took the duvet out of the crib :-) A few things that made it into the final reveal were taken away when they left (a few items of clothing, the green blanket hanging over the end of the crib and the basket to the left of the change table).

10. What did we think of the actual show?

I really, really loved it. I thought it was by far the funniest episode of the season (and they've had a few super funny moments in other episodes!) and found myself laughing out loud multiple times. I was worried about how J and I would come across on tv but I think it ended up being fine. I think I was a little awkward/stiff but all in all I think it was okay. We didn't get made fun of and I don't think the show was edited in a way that made us look different than we really were. As I mentioned above, the only "lie" was mine about the chair. Oops.

So there you have it - I hope that gives a little more insight into what it was like to be part of the show. If you have any further questions, leave a comment and I will get back to you!

I'm going to take some more pics of Luca in the nursery in the coming days, but this will have to do for now! It is amazing how hard it is to get anything done with a newborn in the house. Jeesh! Doesn't he know I have a blog to keep up?!

Now tell me - what did you think? Do you think the wallpaper was too much? Would you be okay with a curb-side Sarah Richardson original? Let me know!

Monday, July 9, 2012

...is coming tomorrow (Tuesday) at 9:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. on HGTV in Canada!! After what has felt like the longest wait EVER, we will finally get to see Luca's nursery reveal on Sarah 101!!

Woo hoo!! I'm hoping they didn't give J and I too much air time (it was so awkward!) but I'm interested to see the process of how the nursery came together and how Sarah and Tommy made some of their decisions.

So get your popcorn and tune in to HGTV to watch our nursery come together!! I'll be back with a full discussion on the end result and how we like everything!

Can't wait to hear what you guys think!

PS unfortunately, the show only airs in Canada right now. If you aren't here, you'll have to come back for photos!

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

First up - Happy 4th of July to all of my US friends!! I hope you have a fabulous day. Up here, we had absolutely fantastic weather for our Canada Day long weekend and we took advantage of that by heading up to the cottage.

Some might think we are crazy for going to the cottage with a 2 week old infant, and I felt the same way at 3 a.m. when Luca was screaming his head off, but generally it was a very nice weekend!

Luca got to spend some time with the family which was really nice - he slept like a champ all day and then...um...didn't sleep so well at night. One thing we did realize is that he likes being rocked/swinging, so I think it was about 4 a.m. when hubs and I decided that we would have to go out and buy a swing for the little guy :-) STAT.

Here are some pics of the weekend!

Bath time!

Cozy after the bath.

I love his rolls!

Spending time with his oldest cousin.

Checking out his first bon fire with Dad.

This is the cry-face.

And the cozy sleep-face.

Spending time down on the dock with Dad.

There you have it. Our first family trip. Luca did great in the car and slept the whole way and thanks to a well-timed offer of a loaner swing, he actually slept last night. Yay!

What did you get up to this long weekend? Cottage? Stay-cation? DIY projects?!

About Me

We bought an old (and I mean OLD) Victorian rowhouse in downtown Toronto in 2009 and have been enjoying all of the ups and downs it has brought into our lives since! Life is good (and scary!). Have any questions or comments? Email me at lifebeginsatthirtyright (at) gmail(dot)com